photography symmetry appears when parts of your composition mirror other parts. It is created when two halves of your scene look the same and balance each other out.

The log was not level but that wasn't going to faze either of us!

Having a moment with a shy red squirrel at British Wildlife Centre, UK

"All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow."

-Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Treecreepers almost appear to defy gravity, as they work their way up a tree trunk & along the undersides of branches. I find them fascinating little birds to watch. The Males are also coming into song at this time of year & I love to listen out for them in the small patch of woodland near my home.

This tiny Wren appeared on the top of the bird feeder outside my window and immediately started singing in a huge voice. It had only just fledged and perhaps had not yet learned all the secretive behaviour typical of a Wren, which is usually heard rather than seen.

It stayed all morning and then came back in the evening.

Perhaps this was its first song? Regardless, it made my day.

This photo shows it larger than life-size - for comparison, look at the screwhead in the feeder.

Eurasian Wren, Troglodytes troglodytes.

#FlickrMonthlyPhoto #Joy

Young couple appeared to be returning into harbour at the close of day, but minutes later they made way after purchasing a case of beer. My guess is they lived or were staying close by, as small craft are not equipped to travel safely after dark.

The scenic, Steveston Heritage Fishing Village is a charming & ever so romantic fishing village that is situated in Richmond BC on the Mighty Fraser River

Canada

I 💖 Steveston

Thank-you for all the overwhelming support and many friendships.

~Christie by the River

** Best experienced in full screen

'Why be a copy, when you were born an original'

The sun appears to be cradled in snow.

Natural sunrays capture the icy edges.

West Coast Winter

British Columbia

Canada

Stay healthy, be kind

~C

Don't be a copy, you were born an original - Author unknown

...appear lonelier than others

last night appeared to be very overcast and yet we decided to venture to the shore of Ullsfjorden fjord to take some long exposures and we found that above the flowing clouds was a beautiful Northern sky to admire with occasionally stars showing and green lights showing through. Standing there in this silent immensity puts many things in life into the real perspective: all our self-built worries and preoccupations appear to shrink into little or nothing when witnessing the grand scheme of nature.

National Geographic | BR-Creative | chbustos.com

An image from a perfect evening at Longshaw Estate last week, with a great cloudscape and golden light across the landscape. The Beech trees to the right of the scene seemed an even more intense colour they appear here. I liked the way the path, the fence and the Ha-Ha lead the eye to the trees.

This rainbow appeared at dusk, after a dramatic storm. It was also my Mom's Birthday. I like to think it was her way of saying she is doing well in Heaven above.

Worldwide Plaza, Hell's Kitchen, Midtown Manhattan

Of course, I love the Judy Garland version, but the rendition by Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwoʻole always gives me goosebumps:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1bFr2SWP1I

IMG_1458 (3)

those idiots are clever - they decided that a sitting human is less dangerous than a standing human and they appeared only when I sat down .-)

this spring we could watch two families bringing up their kids on one on the trees .-)

...and I raced out outside with new energy!

Gerbera jamesonii blooms. Laowa 60mm f/2.8 2x macro lens. Despite how this might look, the histogram remained within bounds ;-)

Messier 97 (top) and Messier 108 (bottom) in Ursa Major are two celestial objects that appear to be close to each other but in reality are separated by an immense distance in space.

M97, known as the Owl Nebula, is a planetary nebula located inside our own galaxy at about 2,500 light-years away and has a diameter of about 2 light years. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781 and it was included in the famous catalogue of Charles Messier as entry 97. Two prominent dark spots inside the nebula give the appearance of an owl’s face.

A planetary nebula is formed by the expanding shell of gases blown off by a dying star at the last stages of its life. The expanding shell is heated by the radiation of the central star (a very faint 16th magnitude star in this case) and it glows mostly in green light of oxygen atoms. The nebula will completely disperse into space over the next several thousand years, while the central star will cool and fade away over the next several billion years.

The estimated age of the Owl Nebula is about 6,000 to 8,000 years.

Galaxy M108, the Surfboard Galaxy, is harder to see in a telescope than M97, because its light is spread out over a larger area. It happens to lie near the same line of sight as M97 but is located at about 45 million light-years away. M108 is an edge-on spiral galaxy, heavily obscured by dust. It was also discovered by Méchain.

Technical Info:

Telescope: Orion EON 80ED refractor, F = 500 mm, f/6.25

Camera: Canon EOS 600Da

Mount: Vixen Sphinx

Filter: none

Guiding: 80/400 Skywatcher refractor - SkyWatcher SynGuider

Light frames: 6 x 5 mins (total: 30 mins), ISO 1600, Custom WB, calibrated with darks.

Date: 26 April 2022

Location Bortle scale: 4

Software: DSS, Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom classic.

A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows caused by sunlight always appear in the section of sky directly opposite the sun.

Source: Wikipedia

Thanks for your visit and comments, I appreciate that very much!

Please don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit written permission.© all rights reserved.

Regards, Bram van Broekhoven (BraCom)

My Homepage | Facebook | Instagram

Fynn and I almost can't believe that 2019 will be history soon. Compared to other years 2019 has been quite kind to us. Despite all his health issues, Fynn has done rather well and we had no major disasters. All in all we have reason to be grateful.

Les mésanges nonnettes sont de petits oiseaux sveltes, généralement curieux et peu farouches. Les mésanges nonnettes apparaissent généralement en couple à la mangeoire, prospectant avec d'autres mésanges. Cependant il s'agit de "couple" composés d'individus du même sexe qui passent l'hiver ensemble. Dès le printemps, lorsque les mâles commencent à chanter, les « faux » couples se séparent. Elles préfèrent chasser dans les niveaux inférieurs de la végétation et au sol. Elles accumulent souvent des réserves pour les périodes de disette.

C'est une visiteuse assez habituelle de nombreux jardins des zones rurales. Elle est assez timide, mais elle ne dédaignera pas les mangeoires en hiver en compagnie d'autres variétés de mésanges, à condition de trouver des arbres ou des buissons à proximité. Les mésanges nonnettes sont tellement vives et rapides qu'un court instant leur suffit, pour prélever des graines à la mangeoire. Dès qu'une place se libère, les couples plongent continuellement sur la mangeoire pour emporter des graines, A la différence des autres mésanges, les nonnettes prennent chaque fois plusieurs graines ; elles peuvent ainsi emporter jusqu'à trois graines de chanvre dans leur bec. Ces graines ne sont pas cependant consommées en même temps mais bien disséminées dans des cachettes appropriées telles que des fourches d'arbres, des crevasses dans les écorces ou des branches tombées au sol. Chaque graine est cachée séparément et souvent n'est pas retrouvée. Dans la nature, elle inspecte les arbres à la recherche d'insectes. Sur le sol, elle se nourrit de graines d'adventices, faînes, baies et graines de tournesol.

******************************************************************

The chickadees are small, slender birds, usually curious and not very shy. Nutcrackers usually appear in pairs at the feeder, prospecting with other tits. However, it is a "couple" composed of individuals of the same sex who spend the winter together. From the spring, when the males begin to sing, the "fake" couples separate. They prefer to hunt in lower levels of vegetation and on the ground. They often accumulate reserves for periods of scarcity.

She is a fairly habitual visitor to many rural gardens. She is quite shy, but she will not disdain the feeders in winter with other varieties of tits, provided they find trees or bushes nearby. The chickadees are so quick and fast that a short moment is enough for them to collect seeds at the manger. As soon as a place is free, the couples dive continually on the feeder to take away seeds, Unlike the other tits, the nonnets each take several seeds; they can carry up to three hemp seeds in their beaks. These seeds, however, are not consumed at the same time but scattered in appropriate hiding places such as tree forks, crevices in bark or fallen branches. Each seed is hidden separately and often is not found. In the wild, she inspects the trees for insects. On the ground, it feeds on weed seeds, beeches, berries and sunflower seeds.

Each time dawn appears, the mystery is there in its entirety. Rene Daumal

There appeared to be plenty of good foraging on this buggy, seaweedy stretch of beach, but these two semipalmated sandpipers, part of a mixed flock that also included least sandpipers and a few semipalmated plovers, didn't seem to want to share. Southern Maine

spring at Devils -Pot large

Chiba, Japan

It appears this speed boat was not as good as 007’s. It couldn’t escape all the bullets being shot at it.

It is not a cigarette boat ...more like a cigar boat, I think.

The robin is one of the most familiar birds of the UK, regularly visiting gardens. Robins are also common in parks, scrub and woodland, making their presence known with a loud, territorial song. They sing from prominent perches right through the winter, when both males and females hold territories; indeed, they are fiercely territorial, driving off intruders and even fighting. During the breeding season, the female is allowed into the male's territory where she sets up a nest of dead leaves, moss and hair. Nests often crop up in the oddest of places, such as plant pots, old wellies and shelves, but Ivy and other shrubs are their natural choice. Robins have been associated with Christmas ever since Victorian times; Victorian postmen, who were known as 'Robin Red-breasts' because of their red waistcoats, are thought to be the inspiration for so many robins appearing on our Christmas cards. Whether it's the case or not, robins certainly make themselves known in winter with their loud, aggressive song!

wasted on nothing

effortlessly you appear

sound of the thunder

reverberating your ear

this is a slow dance

this is the chance to transform

pause for the silence

inhabit the calm of the storm

this is your ocean

an ocean of night

this is an ocean

your ocean of night

this is your ocean

an ocean of night

this is an ocean

your ocean of night

love is a feeling

buried with me in the yard

gaze at the skyline

under the ocean of stars

this is your slow dance

and this is your chance to transform

lost in a moment

the moment your confront the storm

this is your ocean

an ocean of night

this is an ocean

your ocean of night

this is your ocean

an ocean of night

this is an ocean

your ocean of night

I am your hope down the wire, so you can hold back the fire ...

this is your ocean

an ocean of night

this is an ocean

your ocean of night

this is your ocean

an ocean of night

This is an ocean

your ocean of night

www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqlY2fxaFrw

This old oak tree has suffered serious damage some time ago, but it appears healthy and the years have given it an interesting form.

White River Marsh State Wildlife Area

Saint Marie, Green Lake County, Wisconsin

DE224815

This fabulous jetty was graced by the presence of wonderful aurora borealis displays making it appear to be floating over green waters. The night was so calm and starry, cold yet not windy, a delight to be outside and to photograph the natural beauty of Troms in Northern Norway.

This greater flamingo appears to be a highly talented dancer. Here his attitude reminds me of the Pasodoble dance. What a guy!

Please respect my copyright. No use of the photo without my expressly permission.

And: I don't like Comment-Codes, "awards", or such groups. Because of that, Comment codes, "Awards" and invitations in such groups will be deleted. There is an Explanation at my profile.

So, if you want to say something about my photo, it will be really appreciated, no matter if it's about liking or some constructive criticism. Your own thoughts and words will mean much more to me than a universal-text.

Also please don't post pictures in the commenting-area. You could post them much better in your own photo stream. ;-D

The great horned owl (Bubo virginianus), also known as the tiger owl or the hoot owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an extremely adaptable bird with a vast range and is the most widely distributed true owl in the Americas. Its primary diet appears to be rabbits and hares, rats and mice and voles, although it freely hunts any animal it can overtake, primarily other rodents and small mammals, but also larger mid-sized mammals, various birds, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates.

I expect there may be many images of snail shells for this theme, so decided to give my snails a rest this week and photograph my cycad house plant that has just put up a few new leaves - all the tiny 'leaflets' have coiled ends when they first appear that will straighten as the leaf grows. On this particular leaf, one of the little leaflets has grown a bit ahead of the others and shown off the lovely details of its coiled end.

For Macro Mondays theme 'Spiral'.

The image was done as a 5-shot focus stack at f3.5, focusing on the tight coil which was 1cm across.

ubnr

In a new day's tear,

full of emotion,

bitten nails sting.

The mind jumps

never quite landing.

Corners don't meet

and angles appear skewed.

The shape of what we are, will be

is left unfinished.

: listen :-)

thanks to those that take time to look and maybe listen too ^^

♫ Star Trek: Strange New Worlds - Main Theme | VioDance Violin Cover ♫

Captain's log, stardate 6102.1. While investigating a distress call from a star cluster in the Protari system our ship, the U.S.S. Constitution and its crew, were pulled into a mysterious tractor beam. All data shows that we've somehow been transported to another dimension.

Myself, Captain Jezebel Kraai along with Science Officer Cidni Starchild, Chief Engineer Harper Blackwood, and Lieutenant Moran have set foot on what appears to be a post apocalyptic world. The surface appears to be like our own Earth and so far we're reading no life forms.

Could this be Earth and could we have somehow traveled back in time? Is this the year 2231, just after the first nuclear strikes of World War III? I will update when we have more data. Kraai out.

I appreciate these wonderful ladies and fellow artist for helping me out on this one. It's been a long time coming as this shot was actually taken this past May.

I was sort of baffled about what I wanted to do with this capture then decided to do a fantasy composite with it. So this is my first try at this sort of thing. I hope you guys find it at least adequate. Thanks!♥

This the 4th capure I inducted to the In Good Company Erotica Gallery for their October show.

The gallery is owned and operated by my friend Marcus Strong. Thank you so much Marcus for the oppotunity.♥

yes is a pleasant country:

if’s wintry

(my lovely)

let’s open the year

both is the very weather

(not either)

my treasure,

when violets appear

love is a deeper season

than reason;

my sweet one

(and april’s where we’re)

e.e. cummings

It's been over a year since frost first appeared.

This is one of the pictures I took on the first day I used my new camera. At dawn, I went to a lake to see sunrise. Steam was coming off of the surface of the lake. Frost formed across the field surrounding the lake. Then I went to a nature park for hiking. The frost didn't melt for a while. In this picture, you see yellow foliage, a metal fence, and a frosty lawn in the background. My fingers and feet were numb with cold. I couldn't help going ahead because the frosty sight was beautiful under sunshine.

P.S., This picture was taken on the second weekend of October instead of November. I had my camera mistakenly set the date for a month during the first few weeks of use.

Thanks a lot Frank Busch for encouraging me to mess around with "spooky stuff" like lightroom ;-) and trying portraits... You're a great support and a wonderful friend!

Artwork by Jeppe Hein, Bundeskunsthalle Bonn, 06/2022

Wasting on nothing

Effortlessly, you appear

Sound of the thunder

Reverberate in your ears

This is a slow dance

This is the chance to transform

Pause for the silence

In habit, the calm of the storm

This is your ocean, an ocean of night

This is the notion, your ocean of night

This is your ocean, an ocean of night

This is the notion, your ocean of night

Love is a feeling

Buried with me in the yard

Gaze at the skyline

Under the ocean of stars

This is your slow dance

And this is your chance to transform

Lost to a moment

The moment you confront the storm

This is your ocean, an ocean of night

This is the notion, your ocean of night

This is your ocean, an ocean of night

This is the notion, your ocean of night

I am your hope down the wire

So you can hold back the fire

I am your hope down the wire

So you can hold back the fire

I am your hope down the wire

So you can hold back the fire

I am your hope down the wire

So you can hold back the fire

I am your hope down the wire

So you can hold back the fire

I am your hope down the wire

So you can hold back the fire

This is your ocean, an ocean of night

This is the notion, your ocean of night

This is your ocean, an ocean of night

This is the notion, your ocean of night

www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqlY2fxaFrw

Gondolas on the High Roller, the world’s tallest observation wheel and sited adjacent to the Las Vegas Strip, appear to be components of a futuristic space station.

It slowly appears from out of the mist.

Calling for a whisper of heaven's door.

Credits

Song

They appeared for a few moments and then were gone!

On October 1, 2020 I traveled to the Highland Restaurant at the Eagle Ridge Territory outside Galena, Illinois where I knew there were beautiful flower gardens outside. I had just gotten a new Canon Camera with multiple lenses I wanted to try out. Photo Images credited to Vickie L Klinkhammer of Vickielynne Photography and Designs(VLP & Designs). Images may appear on wearable art and home essentials at www.vlpdesigns.com.

Posted with Photerloo

Cathédrale de METZ - France.

Lens : Samyang 12 mm F2.8 Hypergone (fisheye)...

I appear to have found the only Robin with a peanut allergy.... Or maybe it doesn't like this brand of peanut butter.

These lovely roses were taken in our garden this summer 2024.

A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of plants that can be erect shrubs, climbing or trailing with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers vary in size and shape and are usually large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows and reds. Most species are native to Asia, with smaller numbers native to Europe, North America, and northwest Africa. Species, cultivars and hybrids are all widely grown for their beauty and often are fragrant. Rose plants range in size from compact, miniature roses, to climbers that can reach 7 meters in height. Different species hybridize easily, and this has been used in the development of the wide range of garden roses.

The name rose comes from French, itself from Latin rosa, which was perhaps borrowed from Oscan, from Greek ρόδον rhódon (Aeolic βρόδον wródon), itself borrowed from Old Persian wrd- (wurdi), related to Avestan varəδa, Sogdian ward, Parthian wâr.

The leaves are borne alternately on the stem. In most species they are 5 to 15 centimetres (2.0 to 5.9 in) long, pinnate, with (3–) 5–9 (–13) leaflets and basal stipules; the leaflets usually have a serrated margin, and often a few small prickles on the underside of the stem. Most roses are deciduous but a few (particularly from South east Asia) are evergreen or nearly so.

The flowers of most species have five petals, with the exception of Rosa sericea, which usually has only four. Each petal is divided into two distinct lobes and is usually white or pink, though in a few species yellow or red. Beneath the petals are five sepals (or in the case of some Rosa sericea, four). These may be long enough to be visible when viewed from above and appear as green points alternating with the rounded petals. There are multiple superior ovaries that develop into achenes. Roses are insect-pollinated in nature.

The aggregate fruit of the rose is a berry-like structure called a rose hip. Many of the domestic cultivars do not produce hips, as the flowers are so tightly petalled that they do not provide access for pollination. The hips of most species are red, but a few (e.g. Rosa pimpinellifolia) have dark purple to black hips. Each hip comprises an outer fleshy layer, the hypanthium, which contains 5–160 "seeds" (technically dry single-seeded fruits called achenes) embedded in a matrix of fine, but stiff, hairs. Rose hips of some species, especially the Dog Rose (Rosa canina) and Rugosa Rose (Rosa rugosa), are very rich in vitamin C, among the richest sources of any plant. The hips are eaten by fruit-eating birds such as thrushes and waxwings, which then disperse the seeds in their droppings. Some birds, particularly finches, also eat the seeds.

Rose thorns are actually prickles - outgrowths of the epidermis. While the sharp objects along a rose stem are commonly called "thorns", they are technically prickles — outgrowths of the epidermis (the outer layer of tissue of the stem). (True thorns, as produced by e.g. Citrus or Pyracantha, are modified stems, which always originate at a node and which have nodes and internodes along the length of the thorn itself.) Rose prickles are typically sickle-shaped hooks, which aid the rose in hanging onto other vegetation when growing over it. Some species such as Rosa rugosa and Rosa pimpinellifolia have densely packed straight prickles, probably an adaptation to reduce browsing by animals, but also possibly an adaptation to trap wind-blown sand and so reduce erosion and protect their roots (both of these species grow naturally on coastal sand dunes). Despite the presence of prickles, roses are frequently browsed by deer. A few species of roses have only vestigial prickles that have no points.

For further information please visit en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose